Search form

Energy

You are here

There are two groups on which we are building expanded research. The first group works on alternative energy sources, including solar cells, thermoelectric materials and biobased sources. We are very strong here. The second group focuses on transportation, aspects of which have had a long, successful history in the college. Near-term growth will occur in composite vehicles, ‘field-to-wheels’ studies for powertrain design, and hybrid vehicles.

In the News

Shanelle Foster

MSU electrical engineer named finalist in Naval Research Concept Challenge for research on 3D printing

A Michigan State University electrical engineer is a national finalist in the concept challenge hosted by the U.S. Chief of Naval Research.

Shanelle Foster, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, is supporting the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps of the future with her research on 3D printing of magnetic cores used in electrical motors.

She hopes to help the Navy eliminate the logistical difficulties of needing spare motors and generators in the middle of the ocean.

“In spite of the technological advancements in 3D printing, there is still a critical gap in understanding the functional and structural characteristics of deposited iron alloys for the design of magnetic cores in electrical machines, transformers, and other magnetic assemblies. While powder-based additive manufacturing processes have been used to produce fully-dense metallic parts, little has been done to develop functional 3D printed magnetic components,” she said.

Foster hopes to develop magnetic cores using additive manufacturing technology by investigating material magnetic properties. Her research will use binder-jet printing and vacuum sintering to process iron alloys, microscopy to measure the grain size and texture changes as a function of processing parameters and physical properties measures.

Young Investigator Award

Mohsen Zayernouri of the Michigan State University College of Engineering has been awarded a prestigious and selective 2017 Young Investigator Program (YIP) Award from the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR).

AFOSR will present $20.8 million in grants to 58 scientists and engineers from 41 research institutions and small businesses, which submitted winning research proposals through the Air Force's Young Investigator Research Program (YIP). The program is open to scientists and engineers at research institutions across the United States who received Ph.D. or equivalent degrees in the last five years and who show “exceptional ability and promise for conducting basic research,” according to the AFOSR.

Zayernouri is an assistant professor of MSU’s new Computational Mathematics, Science, & Engineering (CMSE) department, and Mechanical Engineering. He is also the director of the Fractional Mathematics for Anomalous Transport and Hydromechanics (FMATH) group at MSU. He joined MSU in 2015.

Testing stress sensors

MSU Engineering researcher to use Mackinac Bridge as platform for innovative technology

Some engineering professors had an idea to monitor bridges with sensors powered with the vibrations generated by traffic. Think self-winding watch.

Those professors, including one at Michigan State University, think they have mastered the technology. But they needed a real-world platform to try it out.

Enter Bob Sweeney and the Mackinac Bridge Authority (MBA). Sweeney heard about the developing technology and knew the Mackinac Bridge, because of its status as a transportation icon and modern marvel of engineering, would provide a high-profile test site.

That's why later this month, Nizar Lajnef, associate professor of civil engineering at Michigan State University (MSU), and professor Shantanu Chakrabartty from Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) will place six of these prototype sensors beneath the bridge.

It's part of a demonstration project by MSU, WUSTL, and the University of Southern California (professor Sami Masri) for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).